Birmingham, England – Malaysia’s Lee Zii Jia suffered a first-round exit at the 2025 All England Open, falling to Hong Kong’s Angus Ng Ka Long in a three-game battle.
Lee Zii Jia Stunned by Ng Ka Long in Opening Round
The 2021 All England champion came into the match with a 6-4 head-to-head lead over Ng, but the Hong Kong shuttler staged a comeback to send Lee packing early.
📺 Watch the Highlights: Lee Zii Jia vs. Angus Ng Ka Long (2025 All England First Round)
🔹 Final Score: Ng Ka Long 2-1 Lee Zii Jia
Game 1: 19-21
Game 2: 21-16
Game 3: 21-12
Lee narrowly edged the first game, but Ng responded with a strong second-game performance to level the match. The decider remained close until 8-8, after which Ng dominated, racing ahead to seal the win 21-12.
Ng Ka Long will now face Singapore’s former world champion Loh Kean Yew in the Round of 16, after Loh defeated compatriot Jason Teh Jia Heng 2-1 in an intense Singaporean showdown.
Defending Champion Jonatan Christie Cruises into Round of 16
Meanwhile, defending champion Jonatan Christie (Indonesia) easily dispatched Leong Jun Hao in straight games to advance.
🔹 Final Score: Jonatan Christie 2-0 Leong Jun Hao
Game 1: 21-11
Game 2: 21-19
Jonatan established control early, breaking away at 12-8 before closing out the first game 21-11.
Leong put up a better fight in the second game, mounting a late comeback from 14-6 down to push Jonatan to 19-20. However, the Indonesian world No. 4 held his nerve, taking the match 21-19.
Jonatan avenges his 2024 Kumamoto Masters loss to Leong and now holds a 2-2 career head-to-head record against the Malaysian.
Up next, Jonatan will face India’s Lakshya Sen.
Aaron Chia/Soh Wooi Yik Knocked Out in Men’s Doubles First Round
🔹 Final Score: Rasmus Kjær / Frederik Søgaard 2-1 Aaron Chia / Soh Wooi Yik
Game 1: 21-16
Game 2: 16-21
Game 3: 21-18
The 5th-seeded Malaysian pair, who finished as runners-up in 2019 and 2024, suffered an early exit after a three-game loss to Denmark’s Rasmus Kjær / Frederik Søgaard.
Despite winning their only previous encounter at the 2024 Malaysia Open, Chia/Soh couldn’t replicate that success.
The Danes took the opening game 21-16, but the Malaysians fought back to level at 1-1. However, in the decider, Chia/Soh ran out of steam, falling 18-21 and ending their 2025 All England campaign prematurely.
Mixed Doubles: Malaysian Pair Ousted in First Round
Malaysia’s new mixed doubles duo, Hoo Pang Ron / Cheng Su Yin, made their All England debut but were stopped in the first round.
🔹 Final Score: Ki Dong Ju / Jeong Na Eun 2-0 Hoo Pang Ron / Cheng Su Yin
Game 1: 21-17
Game 2: 21-18
Fresh off a quarterfinal finish at the Orleans Masters, the Malaysian duo couldn’t overcome Korea’s Ki / Jeong.
The Korean pair will now face China’s No. 7 seeds Guo Xinwa / Cheng Fanghui, who dominated India’s Sathish Kumar Karunakaran / Aadya Variyath 21-6, 21-15 in the first round.
What’s Next?
With Malaysia’s top stars crashing out early, the spotlight now shifts to other title contenders at the 2025 All England Open.
Can Jonatan Christie defend his crown? Will Ng Ka Long’s momentum carry him deeper into the tournament?
Stay tuned for more badminton news and updates from Birmingham! 🏸🔥
